Spider-Man - Chapter 6: Who Is She?! (Patreon)

"You don't look happy today, Peter." Gwen rested her chin on one hand as she looked at the boy beside her.

"I'm all right." He'd had another unpleasant clash with Mary Jane yesterday. Peter had managed to keep things from getting out of hand, but it still hadn't left him in a particularly good mood.

"Suit yourself. The club recruitment fair is coming up. Want to take a look?"

"Of course, Gwen. High school clubs can actually be pretty useful."

Midtown High had decent resources and quite a few influential alumni. Its clubs could offer their members real opportunities and connections.

"I'll pass. I'm not interested in that sort of thing."

"You never know. Maybe some school band needs a drummer. Come on, let's take a look."

"All right. I'll take that as a personal invitation."

"Then I'm honored," Peter replied.

As at most American schools, the sports and social clubs attracted the biggest crowds. Football was especially popular here, but neither Peter nor Gwen was eager to push through a sea of students.

Neither had much interest in joining those groups, either. Still, Gwen gave Peter a playful nudge with her elbow. "With your build, maybe you'd do surprisingly well on the football team."

"They'd be better off giving Thompson another goalpost to carry onto the field than putting me on the team."

"Hmm. Doesn't look like anything here appeals to you. Although... have you spotted something?" Gwen had barely finished speaking when Peter headed toward a booth off to one side.

"Do I just fill in my information here?" he asked.

"That's right. And if you have any special skills, you can list those too." The older girl staffing the booth was delighted to have a visitor.

"The school newspaper? You're interested in that?" Gwen glanced at the club's sign in surprise. "I wouldn't have guessed, Peter."

"Not exactly. Did you know J. Jonah Jameson is one of Midtown High's alumni?"

"The owner of the Daily Bugle?"

"I'm surprised you know him." Peter finished filling out the form. "If I become a reporter for the school paper, I might get the chance to intern at the Daily Bugle. That would look good on my résumé once I graduate."

"Huh." Gwen plainly hadn't been thinking that far ahead. "Well, good luck. Reporting isn't as easy as it sounds."

"Sure, but the photography I've practiced should come in handy. Look, I even brought my portable camera." Peter pulled the camera out of his backpack.

"Peter Yang Parker... Peter, this is wonderful!" The upperclasswoman's eyes lit up as she read his application. "We've been desperate for someone who knows how to take pictures. Welcome to the school newspaper!"

The pretty blonde senior was so excited that she wrapped Peter in a huge hug.

"Thank you very much." Peter cheerfully hugged her back, though Gwen looked a little displeased at his side.

Before Gwen could dwell on it, the senior let go of Peter and hugged her too.

"Whoa!" Gwen exclaimed, taken completely by surprise.

"Are you here to join the newspaper club as well? Welcome, welcome!" the senior said brightly.

The newspaper club really was short on members. It received school funding and offered a rather comfortable arrangement, yet compared with the more popular clubs, its booth looked positively deserted. Hardly anyone read the school publication, either. It mostly existed to keep up appearances.

"Oh, no, I'm not... I mean..." Gwen hurried to turn her down.

"Don't worry. We're very relaxed here! We even have afternoon tea and cake on weekends. And when the school gives us assignments, we can go out together and have some fun." The senior caught Gwen by the hand as she spoke.

"Oh... I... um..." Faced with such infectious enthusiasm, Gwen had no idea how to refuse without hurting the girl's feelings.

"Come on, give Gwen a break," Peter interjected. "This isn't really her thing. She's much more into music. You're getting ready to put a band together, right, Gwen?"

"Oh, absolutely. I'm all prepared. Uh... a band?" Gwen hastily played along, even as she struggled to catch up.

"Oh, that's a shame. Well, I hope it goes great! Maybe I'll get to listen to your album someday." The senior looked a little disappointed.

"Mm-hmm..." Gwen could only nod. Then she elbowed Peter again and whispered, "Hey! I never said anything about starting a band!"

"I know, I know. I was getting you out of a tight spot. Besides, it's not like anyone knows," Peter whispered back, leaning closer.

The senior took a couple of steps away and gave the pair a knowing look as they huddled together, whispering.

Freshmen these days were certainly bold.

"Peter, there you are." A familiar voice made him turn around. With that unmistakable red hair, who else could it be but Mary Jane?

"Uh... Mary Jane. Didn't expect to run into you here," Peter greeted her.

"Aren't you going to introduce us?" Mary Jane asked. Her words were directed at Peter, but her attention was clearly on Gwen beside him.

She'd already heard the rumors about the two of them, but she hadn't paid much attention. Everyone attracted gossip. There were even rumors linking Mary Jane herself to Thompson.

Now, however, seeing Peter and Gwen standing so close together, she wasn't sure those stories were entirely baseless.

"The school newspaper?" Mary Jane glanced at Gwen and continued before either could answer. "I thought you'd join the astronomy club or a book club, Peter. You know, one of those clubs full of nerds."

"I only look like one."

Peter gestured toward Gwen. "This is Gwen, my friend."

Gwen frowned. She was already forming a poor first impression of the newcomer.

Being called a nerd generally meant getting good grades. Gwen's grades were every bit as impressive as Peter's, so Mary Jane's remark hadn't just hit him. It had stung her too.

And Mary Jane had looked straight at her before making the comment. It was hard not to wonder whether the slight had been deliberate.

The girl herself was strikingly pretty, with brilliant red curls, an excellent sense of style, and the effortless confidence of a social queen. She seemed like the exact opposite of Gwen, who preferred keeping to herself.

"Hmm... a friend you've known for one day?" Mary Jane asked, taking two steps closer. There was a faintly intimidating edge to her approach.

"Three days, actually," Peter corrected her, entirely unmoved. "We met when we were both running late on the first day."

"Hey, hold on, Peter. Who is she?" Gwen demanded. Peter clearly knew this girl, but how had Gwen never heard that he was friends with someone so socially confident?

Wasn't Peter supposed to be just like her, a solitary little spider happily entertaining himself in a corner of the ceiling?

"Uh, this is Mary Jane. She's... my... friend?" Peter hesitated. Then he caught Mary Jane's unfriendly expression and answered more firmly. "Yes. An old friend."